CWE-209
Generation of Error Message Containing Sensitive Information
AI Translation Available
The product generates an error message that includes sensitive information about its environment, users, or associated data.
Status
draft
Abstraction
base
Likelihood
high
Affected Platforms
Java
Not Language-Specific
PHP
Technical Details
AI Translation
Common Consequences
confidentiality
Impacts
read application data
Detection Methods
manual analysis
automated analysis
automated dynamic analysis
manual dynamic analysis
automated static analysis
Potential Mitigations
Phases:
implementation
build and compilation
system configuration
Descriptions:
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Use naming conventions and strong types to make it easier to spot when sensitive data is being used. When creating structures, objects, or other complex entities, separate the sensitive and non-sensitive data as much as possible.
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Where available, configure the environment to use less verbose error messages. For example, in PHP, disable the display_errors setting during configuration, or at runtime using the error_reporting() function.
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Ensure that error messages only contain minimal details that are useful to the intended audience and no one else. The messages need to strike the balance between being too cryptic (which can confuse users) or being too detailed (which may reveal more than intended). The messages should not reveal the methods that were used to determine the error. Attackers can use detailed information to refine or optimize their original attack, thereby increasing their chances of success.
If errors must be captured in some detail, record them in log messages, but consider what could occur if the log messages can be viewed by attackers. Highly sensitive information such as passwords should never be saved to log files.
Avoid inconsistent messaging that might accidentally tip off an attacker about internal state, such as whether a user account exists or not.
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Handle exceptions internally and do not display errors containing potentially sensitive information to a user.
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Debugging information should not make its way into a production release.
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Create default error pages or messages that do not leak any information.